Thousands of Haredi Drivers Join Nationwide Protest Expected to Snarl Major Roads

At 4 p.m. Wednesday, major traffic disruptions are expected across Israel as the Haredi community launches an unprecedented nationwide car protest against arrests of yeshiva students and married scholars. Organizers say thousands of drivers from across all sectors and communities are traveling in convoys from 19 locations, from Safed in the north to Arad in the south, toward the military prison known as Prison 10 near Beit Lid.

The protest is being led by senior figures linked to the Gur Hasidic movement, with rabbinic backing. Their goal, they said, is an “enormous show of force” that will send a message of “enough” against what they describe as the persecution of Torah learners and the arrest of draft dodgers. They also said the protest is meant to defend “the honor of God” and the right to remain “men of Torah” who sit and study.

In recent days, organizers have conducted extensive planning, dividing routes, arranging traffic procedures and issuing safety instructions to thousands of drivers. According to the plan, demonstrators will travel slowly on major roads, including Routes 1, 4 and 6, as well as the Ayalon Highway, in order to slow traffic and effectively shut down key arteries during the afternoon and evening.

Police are on high alert and have deployed about 200 officers near the military prison. Authorities have imposed a strict condition barring the convoys from entering Kfar Yona or the prison compound itself, in an effort to avoid direct clashes with local residents, who have said they intend to form a “human wall” to block the protesters.